


Ballad of the Future

by Orlha



Series: Abandoned/Works on hiatus [1]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Drabble, Drama & Romance, Eventual Happy Ending, F/M, Idiots in Love, Implied/Referenced Suicide, KakaSaku is endgame, Kakashi's guilt, References to Depression, Slow Burn, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-24
Updated: 2018-08-17
Packaged: 2019-05-27 23:05:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 3,287
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15035297
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Orlha/pseuds/Orlha
Summary: Kakashi receives letters from himself decades into the future, asking him to stop Sakura's death [Drabble fic] [Orange AU]





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This plagued me for some reason. I've never written a full-on romance with anything but romance in the focus *squints* please pardon me if this doesn't live up to your expectations. Kakasaku is end game. As it's a drabble fic, the chps be... well really short! Uhm... but probably a lot faster? 
> 
> Enjoy!

Theme song! 

* * *

 

Kakashi runs a hand down his face, tired from staying up all night chasing after the strange chakra pulse that appeared at midnight. Staggering slightly, he leans heavily against his fridge, pulling out a pre-packed bento.

_‘Breakfast is an important meal_ , _’_ is scribbled on each individual box. He runs a hand across the words, imagining instead of Sakura’s pre-packed bento for the week, it’s her cooking breakfast in the morning. She would be at his kitchen, her favourite apron tied at her waist, the stray hair brushing against the nape of her neck as she washes the rice.

Kakashi sinks onto his chair and opens the bento.

‘ _Eat something different! (╬ Ò_ _‸_ _Ó) ‘_ is stuck on the back of the lid.

He smiles to himself. Sakura, always such a worrywart. Even if it’s not Miso mackerel, Kakashi would never turn away food cooked by Sakura. He scoops a mouthful of rice with his chopsticks, popping a fried egg roll into his mouth. How long can he enjoy this? He heard of Sakura promising the Uchiha that she would wait. Would she stop after marriage?

As he slowly savours his morning meal, he notices an envelope onto his table, right in front of him. He chokes. His hand moving to tug his headband up, only to remember belatedly that he has no more sharingan.

‘Old fashioned way I guess,’ he sighs inwardly and creates a clone. The clone takes it and opens it away from him.

Kakashi recognises this handwriting, it’s impossible to when he sees it every day and as though to certify it is him, it is sealed with a Hatake Mon with his chakra impressed into it.

_‘To the me in the past, from me in the future’_ is all the envelope says on the front.

The envelope is thick. Part of him insists on bringing it to Aoba or someone to verify it’s authenticity, but there’s no way fake this. He runs a thumb over the Mon. Chakra signatures are impossible to fake.

He shallows the disbelief and pulls out the thick letter.

‘ _To the me in the past,_

_This is me from the future. I am currently forty-two years old. There will be no words that I can write here to prove that it is me from the future. I will instead offer something that I have never told anyone and a secret that I’ve kept for the entire of my shinobi career.’_

_Otou-san’s last words were never forget to love. And the secret is the third tatami mat in his office.’_

Kakashi pauses in his reading. The memory of his father’s last words squeezing the air in his lungs. He has never told anyone that, not a Yamanaka, not even Minato-sensei. Whoever who wrote this, whoever who sent this, knows him.

A letter from himself, a letter from the future? This is ridiculous! If they wanted a spy or something from him, then surely they could have come up with a better story.

He flips to the next page. Any humour and joy is driven out of him.

_‘In seven years, Sakura will kill herself. Help me save her.’_

 


	2. Chapter 2

Kakashi is tempted to ignore the letter. There is no telling how the letter had entered his apartment or who wrote it. He selectively chooses to ignore the secret the writer of the letter had offered.

‘Coincidences.’ That’s what he chooses to tell himself. He lean indolently back against a tree near the step of the hospital waiting for Sakura. The writer of the letter mentioned that Sakura would be late. Kakashi scoffs. Even a decade later of being teammates with him and in spite of the fact that he has consistently be late, Sakura has never been late for any appointment.

An hour passes their meeting time. Then three. Kakashi, by now, is waiting on the steps, a sense of worry and fear filling him.

The writer was right. If the writer is right about this, then what about the others?

_‘In seven years, Sakura will kill herself.’_

Kakashi slouched into his pockets, resisting the urge to pace. Just because the writer got one thing right, it doesn’t mean it’ll be true. He cannot imagine a situation that Sakura would kill herself. Her green eyes, always glimmering with mirth when she glanced at him; her laughter, always clear and soothing, drifting in the wind like music, Sakura, always full of life and emotion.

“Kakashi!” He hears her call and he swivels on the ball of his foot, seeing her pink hair bobbing down the street. He feels his heart thumping erratically in his ribs, a whoosh of breath escaping his lips.

“You’re late,” he says when she reaches.

“Maa, maa. I got lost on the road of life.” Her eyes danced in merriment, crinkling in a mimicry of his regular expression.

“I was almost ready to escape,” he tells her. Sakura tugs him through the hospital doors and towards her office.

“I would have chased you down,”  she hums non-committedly as she puts on her medical gloves and pulls up his headband. “Now I’m going to circulate my chakra to check-up on that poorly advised cellular growth that Naruto did.”

Kakashi motions her to get on with it, already familiar with her routine and angrily mumbling of Naruto’s actions. Honestly, he _would_ have escaped this torture if Sakura hadn’t been his primary medic. He takes in her soft pink lashes framing her green eyes, the pink eyebrows curving her eyes. He gets a strong whiff of her scent when she steps closer to him, her eyebrows frowning in focus as she uses her chakra to map and heal the micro tears around his eye.

‘Blood and salt. Blood and _tears,’_ he corrects himself. What had happened that made her late? Why is there the smell of blood all over her?

“Are you okay, Sakura? Why do I smell blood?” He takes a stronger whiff of her and Sakura looks away embarrassed.

“Stop that Kakashi! It’s just… just my period-” Her face flushes. Turning away, she snaps off her gloves. “We’re all done here now.”

_‘Sakura will be late for the medical appointment. Ask her to go out for lunch. She shouldn’t be left alone today.’_

Kakashi swallows dryly. If the writer was right… If Sakura needed his help… should he really be playing around with this? “Sakura…”

But what if they want him to not leave her alone? What if the whole thing with Sakura is just to lead him around by the nose?

Sakura signs off various forms and nods. “Okay, that’s all the medical chakra we can do on your eye today. I’ll see you next week!” She smiles, the same grin he sees every time he sees her, but something is off.

“Sakura, do you-”

She shakes her head before he can even ask. “I have so much work to do today, plus since it’s my first day, I’m not feeling too good. Another day?” She practically shoves him out of the door, handing him a form to give to the receptionist. “Bye!”

His gut twisting knots as he stands there staring at the door. He draws a deep breath.

‘Has to be the letter giving him weird vibes about today,’ Kakashi decides. Her smile was the same, her body reactions was the same too.

‘Yea. Just the letter making him overthink.’


	3. Chapter 3

Sakura is missing from the morning team meeting the following week. Kakashi tried not to think much of it. Sakura had missed meetings before - an emergency surgery, a surgery that was still ongoing or even her passed out on her couch after a long surgery. Her absence is nothing special yet there is a coil in his gut that seemed to tighten with each minute that passed.

“Sakura is late…” Naruto mutters, strangely subdued with a frown creased on his forehead.

“She might have had a surgery that wiped her out last night,” Yamato offered.

Naruto pouted, folding his arms across his chest. “I think we should go and find her.”

Kakashi flips a page of his Icha Icha, trying really hard to think of the letter. What did the letter say? There had been so many pages, thicker than his usual mission reports. He hadn’t wanted to put stock into this letter that proclaimed on being from the future and had stopped reading after the second page.

In the training ground clearing, Naruto paces back and forth, refusing Yamato’s suggestions to just start training and it is odd. Kakashi closes his book and replaces it into his pouch, shunshining to them.

“Looks like Sakura isn’t coming. Shall we start?” He asks them.

“But Sakura’s missing! We should go look for her, or, you know!”

Yamato smacks Naruto lightly on the head. “Sakura is a grown woman. And it’s not her first time missing practice. I don’t see why you’re worried.”

“Taichou is right. Hag has missed several times before. Her absence is noted but is not special. There is no reason to be worried. Conversely, I think your addiction to ramen is becoming worrying.” Sai pulls out a brush and smiles a bright fake smile at Naruto. “May I call for an intervention? I read that interventions are done to friends when they think something needs fixing.”

Naruto groans. Not wanting to waste anymore - something that Kakashi found ironic, Kakashi lobbed a spray of shurikens at the team, finally starting the team practice. Naruto deflects the shurikens, his face surprisingly serious.

“I don’t care what you all are saying, I’m going to look for Sakura,” he says, quickly forming the seals to shunshin away. The irksome feeling bubbles in his stomach, roiling as he turns to eye Yamato and Sai. Kakashi didn’t need to tell them that this behaviour was unlike Naruto. Perhaps when he was younger, but ever since he had been nominated as one of the three Hokage candidates, Naruto had impressed everyone with his unfaltering work ethics.

“I’ll check the Hospital district,” Yamato offers with an indolent shrug.

Wordlessly, Sai heads off to the shopping district. Somehow, Kakashi didn’t think Sakura would have been either of that districts. Kakashi hadn’t wanted to pressure her after last week despite knowing she had lied about being busy. She had promised to wait for Sasuke, perhaps she had gotten uncomfortable so being familiar with her old sensei.

Kakashi digs his hands into his pockets, slumping into a slouch. She hadn’t even dropped by his apartment to pick up the empty containers, let alone drop off food for this week. He makes his way through the housing district to the apartment building that Sakura now lives in. His empty containers would make a fantastic excuse now, except they’re in his apartment. He turns away, half-convincing himself that it’d be better for her if he stayed away. She doesn’t need his one-sided feelings to complicate things. When Sasuke gets back, everything would be like she always dreamed off.

His mind conjures the last portion of the letter he read, _‘Sakura will fail to turn up for the team meeting’_

And Kakashi stills his step. What happens after that, what ‘friendly’ advice the letter has for him, he doesn’t know. Kakashi hadn’t read past page 2. The author knew too much of Kakashi’s motivations, too much of his thoughts and it discomfited him. He casts a furtive glance to Sakura’s apartment. In the humid summer breeze, he can see her pale yellow curtains flapping through the window. What would the author benefit from this? He inwardly shakes his head, the better question would be what could he lose from this?

Kakashi takes a step towards the stairs and sighs.

If he gives in and follows this so-called letters from his future self, he could be validating the weaknesses in the letter. And they weren’t false. He could lose so much from this.

Kakashi squeezes his eye and decides that it’d be better for him to get out of here before someone spots him…

“Kaka-sensei!” Naruto shouts, his arm hooking Kakashi’s elbow.

‘Yes, someone like Naruto,’ he mutters dryly to himself.

“You’re here to see Sakura too! I knew you cared!” Naruto drags him up the stairs, not even listening to his objections.

Naruto is truly a force of nature, just like his regular sparring partner. Kakashi wouldn’t even be surprised if Kakashi copied Lee with his green spandex and bowl cut one day.

“Sakura!” Naruto yells outside her door and bangs on the door hard. “Ano sa, ano sa! Open hard or imma break it down!” He bangs harder. “Commmmme oon!” By now Kakashi is certain that the block across the district can hear him banging on the door.

“Imma count to ten, Sakura! Or I’m breaking in!” Naruto shakes him hard enough to rattle his teeth. “Come on, Kaka-sensei, do _something._ ”

With the patience that came from dealing Gai, Kakashi clears throat and says loud enough for her to hear from inside. “One, two, _ten_.”

Naruto beams and rasengan’s through the door.

“My door!”

“Then you should have opened up,” Naruto tells Sakura blandly. She runs a hand through her hair, she looks tired but otherwise normal but there’s something not quite right. Naruto drops him to the ground where he lies there whining about his terrible students, covertly taking in the sight of Sakura. Her hair looks like it needs a wash, her eyes have bags and her clothes- Her clothes don’t have the smell of the hospital, definitely not the way it does after a long surgery, and they don’t even smell like a day old hospital.

Sakura lets Naruto drag her to Ichiraku after making him promise to fix her door and Kakashi tags along but all he can think of is the letter.

_‘Sakura will fail to turn up for the team meeting’_

Fail to turn up then _what?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I ran into plot issues and had to figure the timeline of this.... ((´д｀)) Thank the sage for kwaifu who poke me out of the issues I had.


	4. Chapter 4

Seeing Naruto and Kakashi yesterday made her feel lighter. They were there for her, they always have been. Even when they hadn't known what happened, they had noticed her absence, worried for her. She can't make they worry any more. If she don't go to the hospital today or turn up for her lunch meeting with Naruto, he'd probably set the village ablaze with his clones until he finds her and Sakura knows that he is as good as his promise.

Sakura forces herself to eat the cold ramen Naruto had packed away for her and slips on her sandals. She can do this.

She hesitates in front of her door.

‘It’s not so bad outside! Look the sun is out. It’s a bright day,’ she tells herself, trying to psyche herself up. Her hand rests on the door handle, unable to push it open. She can’t. How can she? Going out there means putting on a smile, pretending like nothing is wrong.

She clutches her shirt and slides against her door. Where is Sasuke? Why is she dealing this alone? Maybe if she had been more careful she wouldn’t have lost her baby. Maybe, maybe. She claws her arms, trying to redirect the pain in her chest.

_Please, Sasuke._

There is a peck on kitchen window and a hawk shuffles awkwardly on her windowsill. _It’s like Sasuke heard her!_

She reaches for the letter bound on the hawk’s leg.

_‘I’m not ready to come back yet. At least it wasn’t further along and that you weren’t hurt. At two months old it probably doesn’t count as a real baby yet.’_

She curls up against kitchen cabinet. While she hadn’t planned for herself to be pregnant, she thought her being pregnant would make Sasuke return at least. Make him stay a little while.

_At least it wasn’t further along._

She lets out a sob. She just can’t.

She’ll go out tomorrow instead.

-/-/-/-

Kakashi pulls open the drawer and sets the letter on the table. He can choose not to read it and choose to ignore it but wouldn’t it be better to know what it actually said before ignoring it?

He taps a finger on the table, staring at the letter hard.

Sakura hadn’t looked good when he saw her yesterday. She was tired and exhausted which would have made sense if she had been in a long surgery, but she hadn’t. He had checked the hospital logs after separating from them and she hadn’t been in the hospital for two days.

_‘In seven years, Sakura will kill herself. Help me save her.’_

Sage, what if his refusal to read it is what lead to the event that caused his future self to write this. Could he live with the guilt that he might have been able to change the future?

“Sage of the six paths,” Kakashi swears and runs a hand through his hair. “ _Fine_.”

Laying it flat, he properly reads it, memorizing it word for word. He can’t imagine a future with Sakura dead. None of what his ‘future self’ wants him to do is ground-breaking. Nothing like what he assumed a traitor or a spy would want and now that he thinks about it, it wouldn’t make sense for them to try to save Sakura.

He has to try a little at least. Check in on her like what the letter wants. That’s not hard, right?

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bah, this was supposed to be a weekly update. I totally missed it. I'm sorry!


	5. Chapter 5

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Naruto had turned up the next few days to drag him out to visit Sakura. Kakashi sighs, digging his hands into his pockets. Yamato raises at eyebrow at him. Kakashi isn’t even putting effort to avoid Naruto and this surprises Yamato.

“Is there something I’m missing?” Yamato asks him as they trail behind Naruto.

Kakashi doesn’t bother looking up from his novel. “Should there be?”

Yamato motions at Naruto. “You’re following Naruto without much fuss. Naruto is very good at strong arming people into doing stuff, but usually that takes some effort. You didn’t.”

He flips a page. “Maybe I just like ramen.”

Yamato stares at him hard but wisely said nothing. What Yamato didn’t know was that Kakashi had been ‘reluctantly’ following Naruto whenever he dragged him out to visit Sakura. It helps that he now sees her enough that he can quickly tell if her mood is getting better or worse. With their frequent visits, he could see that Sakura was putting back on some weight.

He could do this. Watching her beside her instead of afar.

Naruto pounds on the door, hollering for her. Sakura opens it quickly, having learnt from her past experiences.

“Naruto. You’re here. _Again._ Why?”

“Cuz ramen never waits for anyone!” Naruto beams and grabs her by the wrist, already dragging her down the building. Wordlessly, Kakashi locks her door and sauntered after them.

-/-/-/-

Kakashi meanders down the streets, climbing up the steps of a now-very familiar building.

“Kakashi-sensei…? What are you doing here? I thought Naruto said that he couldn’t make it today?” Sakura asks, popping her out of the door to look for him.

 _What was he really doing here, anyway?_ Kakashi mutters to himself. He hunches in on himself, the letter told him to check in on her regularly. That’s what he is doing, right?

“I followed a cat and found myself here. Might as well go for lunch.” He crinkles an eye at her and thumbs to the stairs.

She sighs. “As long as it’s not ramen,” she tells him.

Kakashi nods sagely. “There’s a new Okonomiyaki shop on Nami street.”

Her face lifts at his words and she hooks her arm around his. For the first time in the last few weeks, there is a small but genuine smile on her face. If accompanying her for lunch will help her lift her spirits, then he could manage this.

And Kakashi does.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh yes, this is shorter than usual.... but it's kinda supposed to be drabbles... but it appears that I'm so concerned over not losing quality over quantity... so hence the slow speed *cough* I'll try harder. Hope you enjoyed!


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